Four Awesome Gifts That New Moms Actually Want

When you go to a baby shower, you probably want to get the mother (and baby) a gift that they will use and love, and will think of you fondly when they see it. What you probably don\’t want to get them is a gift that will only provide store credit when they take it back and trade it in for something more useful.


We want to let you in on a little secret: When shopping for a new baby, avoid spending money on receiving blankets. Receiving blankets seem to be a form of currency in the baby shower world, like cigarettes in prison. But they don\’t serve a whole ton of purpose. They aren\’t big enough to swaddle the child in, you aren\’t supposed to put any blankets on the baby while they sleep, and they aren\’t large enough to cover the floor for the child to play on. The only value of receiving blankets to a new mom is to sop up spit-up or… other bodily fluids, when there\’s not a better option within hand\’s reach. That\’s it. Every new mom gets about a metric ton of receiving blankets at each baby shower she has, and then when she\’s in the hospital after giving birth, the hospital gives them out like they grow on trees.


So going back to getting the new mom in your life a gift that they actually want and will use, here\’s a list of ideas that you can\’t go wrong with:

1. Fitted Crib Sheets
   Fitted crib sheets are often overlooked when a new mom is creating a gift registry, but a necessity when a new baby arrives. Generally, it\’s an afterthought that results in a last minute trip to Target for fitted crib sheets so that baby has something to sleep on. This is an extremely easy gift, as baby crib sheet sizes are standard, so you don\’t have to worry that your fitted crib sheet won\’t fit.
   
   
   If you really want to get a special Thank You note from the deal… consider throwing in a crib sheet protector. Baby sheet protectors are plastic sheets that go under the fitted crib sheet to protect the baby from dust mites and allergens, as well as the mattress from baby messes and even bed bugs.




2. A Diaper Disposal System
   
   Babies make a lot of stinky diapers. Like, a lot. If new parents do not have an odor-proof solution for disposing of those stinkers, they\’ll end up with a stinky home. Treating the new mom in your life to a nice diaper disposal system to easily get rid of diapers as her little angel creates them is a gift that keeps giving. And giving. And giving.




3. Diapers… But Not Size Newborn.
   
   For some reason, everyone assumes that helping new parents prepare for their little miracle means getting them everything they need for day one, and nothing they need after that. Almost always, a new mom gets more newborn size diapers than her little one could ever soil (remember, some babies are born already too large for size newborn!) and not one diaper that will fit them after that. If you want to get the new mom in your life a gift that will really be handy, consider gifting them a giant box of size two diapers. The baby will spend the longest length of their babyhood in size two to three.
4. A Gift for Mom
   
   Having a baby is hard on a human. After giving birth, the mother feels like a train wreck. Even months later, she might still struggle with accepting her post-baby body, as well as the added gift of the \”baby blues\” that make her feel more emotionally delicate. Even though there are a ton of practical gifts you could gift a new mom for the baby, sometimes the greatest new mom gifts are for the lady who just went through the most physically draining experience of her life. Consider gifting a new mom with gift certificates to a spa or beauty salon, to help her feel beautiful again. Or chocolate. No mom was ever harmed by a gift of chocolate.

Do you have any suggestions to add to our list? Shout them out below!